Big Win for the War Against the Ivory Trade

January 31, 2017

By Wildlife Conservation Network

As of Tuesday, two of the world’s most notorious criminals—the Akasha brothers—and their cohorts have been extradited from Kenya to the U.S. to face justice for their crimes. The Akasha brothers are thought to be involved in the ivory trade, and while they have been accused mainly for smuggling narcotics, like so many crime syndicates, various other illegal goods also pass through their routes.

According to U.S. diplomatic cables published by Wikileaks, the Akasha family has been involved in the drug trade for years. The Satao Project, a private company focused on fighting poaching stated that the Akashas’ network was also linked to around 30 tons of ivory seizures. No one knows how much may have been trafficked without having been detected. But their extradition to the US is significant as it shows that criminals like the Akasha brothers will eventually be brought to justice for their crimes.